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ladyofnorthfarm's review
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
it’s pretty clear the further you get into this text that De Shong Meador was trained as a Jungian analyst, as some of her extrapolations on the source material are a bit far fetched and begin to sound repetitive. however her historical research is very thorough, and her attempts to try and immerse the reader in the time and place of a priestess from the 23rd century bc are highly successful. her prose translations are unique, and in many places timelessly stunning. a personal favorite of mine was: fighting is her play / she never tires of it / she goes out running / strapping on her sandals. i do think that it is helpful to have been exposed to more classical forms of ancient poem, epic, etc translation however before reading this text, or even reading it in tandem with a more traditional translation of the same, such as The Exaltation of Inanna by J. J. A. van Dijk and William W. Hallo, which De Shong Meador does cite throughout. overall a worthwhile and intriguing read!
tri_lo_bite's review against another edition
This was my second stop on my quest to read all the religious texts in the world, and where better to go than the beginning?
Enheduanna is the first author whose name we know. This book contains her three long poems, exaltations to the goddess Inanna.
The poems were gorgeous. It’s clear that the translator, Betty De Shong Meador is a poet. But what she is not is an archaeologist or historian.
I’m a little confused about how this book was written to be honest. Meador says she cannot read cuneiform, and had a colleague help her with her translations. But she also says that she didn’t have her poems looked over after the fact, which doesn’t quite make sense to me.
I’d really like to read a biography about Enheduanna written by a historian. She sounds fascinating, and if Meador’s translations are accurate, she has wonderful poetry. I just don’t quite trust the analysis Meador provided. I’d love to, it’s lovely and well written, but it’s also looked at through a very strong feminist lens-don’t get me wrong, that can be great, but when Meador isn’t a historian it kind of worries me- and used almost as a critique of Christianity and Judaism, two much much later religions. Sure, you can of course trace things back through history, but I’d like a second opinion on some of the theories.
I’m not saying it wasn’t lovely. It was. The poetry was wonderful, and I did learn a lot through both the poems and the analysis. I found myself grinning at Inanna’s blood thirstiness, and at her love.
And I got so so so excited at evidence for trans folk way back in the poems written by the first named author! I mean, how cool is that! And not only are their trans folk, but they’re sacred. How beautiful.
I don’t know if I’ll be able to give this book a star rating. For Enheduanna herself? 5 stars. Meador? Not sure.
TW: death, blood, gore, castration, killing of people and animals, not graphic mentions of sex
Enheduanna is the first author whose name we know. This book contains her three long poems, exaltations to the goddess Inanna.
The poems were gorgeous. It’s clear that the translator, Betty De Shong Meador is a poet. But what she is not is an archaeologist or historian.
I’m a little confused about how this book was written to be honest. Meador says she cannot read cuneiform, and had a colleague help her with her translations. But she also says that she didn’t have her poems looked over after the fact, which doesn’t quite make sense to me.
I’d really like to read a biography about Enheduanna written by a historian. She sounds fascinating, and if Meador’s translations are accurate, she has wonderful poetry. I just don’t quite trust the analysis Meador provided. I’d love to, it’s lovely and well written, but it’s also looked at through a very strong feminist lens-don’t get me wrong, that can be great, but when Meador isn’t a historian it kind of worries me- and used almost as a critique of Christianity and Judaism, two much much later religions. Sure, you can of course trace things back through history, but I’d like a second opinion on some of the theories.
I’m not saying it wasn’t lovely. It was. The poetry was wonderful, and I did learn a lot through both the poems and the analysis. I found myself grinning at Inanna’s blood thirstiness, and at her love.
And I got so so so excited at evidence for trans folk way back in the poems written by the first named author! I mean, how cool is that! And not only are their trans folk, but they’re sacred. How beautiful.
I don’t know if I’ll be able to give this book a star rating. For Enheduanna herself? 5 stars. Meador? Not sure.
TW: death, blood, gore, castration, killing of people and animals, not graphic mentions of sex
romanoirs's review against another edition
4.0
I wish most of Enheduanna's writing hadnt been lost her work is beautiful and
surprisingly modern for its time. Its rather difficult but worth it.
surprisingly modern for its time. Its rather difficult but worth it.
atticmoth's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
5.0
If you had told me that the oldest known work of literature was written by a bisexual priestess about yonic cults and gender bending… you’d be right. I’m exaggerating a bit, because it’s not right to apply modern-day labels to a writer so long ago, but these three poems contrasted starkly with the other, much more dour, poems from antiquity that I’ve read.
The poems themselves were actually really readable, and they felt like metal lyrics at times… I could imagine the lead singer from Jinjer screaming along to them. I only wish there were more, but I know that this translator has a book of the 42 temple hymns too, so I’m glad that the rest of Enheduanna’s body of work isn’t lost to time! I’m definitely gonna check those out next.
I don’t usually read the introduction/commentary, but this book was mostly that, given there are only three poems. It actually helped a lot given how far removed we are from the subject matter. It’s definitely an academic text, but it’s a lot more accessible than most I’ve read, it gives historical context for people who know nothing about Mesopotamia (ME!!) and it’s a pretty impressive feat to make all that still relevant for women living in the 21st century.
Anyway… this was a surprisingly emotional read, perhaps just because I had the context of knowing how old it is and still feeling like I could hear the author’s voice in such old texts, which is honestly kind of humbling. It astounds me that this isn’t considered a feminist or protofeminist classic!
The poems themselves were actually really readable, and they felt like metal lyrics at times… I could imagine the lead singer from Jinjer screaming along to them. I only wish there were more, but I know that this translator has a book of the 42 temple hymns too, so I’m glad that the rest of Enheduanna’s body of work isn’t lost to time! I’m definitely gonna check those out next.
I don’t usually read the introduction/commentary, but this book was mostly that, given there are only three poems. It actually helped a lot given how far removed we are from the subject matter. It’s definitely an academic text, but it’s a lot more accessible than most I’ve read, it gives historical context for people who know nothing about Mesopotamia (ME!!) and it’s a pretty impressive feat to make all that still relevant for women living in the 21st century.
Anyway… this was a surprisingly emotional read, perhaps just because I had the context of knowing how old it is and still feeling like I could hear the author’s voice in such old texts, which is honestly kind of humbling. It astounds me that this isn’t considered a feminist or protofeminist classic!
hramona's review
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
I don’t really know how to put into words how absolutely MAGICAL this book was. The poetry translations are divine and the way Meador writes about both Enheduanna and Inanna is just, perfect. Ancient Sumerian lesbian goals tbh
romanoirs's review
4.0
I wish most of Enheduanna's writing hadnt been lost her work is beautiful and
surprisingly modern for its time. Its rather difficult but worth it.
surprisingly modern for its time. Its rather difficult but worth it.
skyereads's review
5.0
Incredible. Both the poems and the interpretation are rich and rewarding. Enheduanna's verse oustrips the most post-modern of poets in its rawness and immediacy. Betty De Shong Meador is a Jungian analyst, not an archaeologist, and this needs to be taken into account as the purpose of this book is interpretation not a historical study.
Top marks for bypassing all the tired and worn out ideas Graves perpetuated and actually embracing what is there, rather than trying to bend it to an agenda. Extra credit for treating both Inanna and Enheduanna as unique entities and not merging them into some idealised archetype. Another reviewer suggests Meador is wrong in putting Enheduanna forward as some sort of feminist heroine - I did not get this impression at all. Enheduanna is described as embodying a natural role within her society that no longer exists in ours. The distinction is important.
Read this for the power of words written by a woman expressing her deepest emotions, over 4000 years ago, echoing in your head today.
Top marks for bypassing all the tired and worn out ideas Graves perpetuated and actually embracing what is there, rather than trying to bend it to an agenda. Extra credit for treating both Inanna and Enheduanna as unique entities and not merging them into some idealised archetype. Another reviewer suggests Meador is wrong in putting Enheduanna forward as some sort of feminist heroine - I did not get this impression at all. Enheduanna is described as embodying a natural role within her society that no longer exists in ours. The distinction is important.
Read this for the power of words written by a woman expressing her deepest emotions, over 4000 years ago, echoing in your head today.
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